HP Brief

New fuel standards in the US

The US government recently finalized standards that will
increase fuel economy to the equivalent of 54.5 mpg for cars
and light-duty trucks by model year 2025. When combined with
previous standards, this move will nearly double the fuel
efficiency of those vehicles compared to new vehicles currently
on the road. In total, the program to improve fuel economy is
expected to reduce US oil consumption by 12 billion barrels.
The standards issued by the US Department of Transportation
(DOT) and the US Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) build on the previously issued standards for cars and
light trucks for model years 20112016. Those standards
raised average fuel efficiency by 2016 to the equivalent of
35.5 mpg.

Valero has decided to further reduce operations and
reorganize its 235,000-bpd Aruba refinery as arefined products
terminal, the company said. The terminal will feature both
deepwater berths and smaller berths, and will have the
flexibility to load the very largest crude ships. Terminal
activities will, however, require a considerably smaller
workforce, according to the company. The reorganization and
reduction in workforce is expected to be complete before the
end of 2012. Valero will continue to supply jet fuel, gasoline,
diesel and fuel oil to the island, as well as engage in
third-party terminal services. In the terminal operations mode,
Valero will continue to invest in Aruba with facility
improvements and dock and tankage upgrades, the company said.
In the near-term, the refinery will continue to be maintained
in a state that would allow a restart, should Valero be
successful in the pursuit of alternatives for the refinery prior to the terminal
transition.

US investment group Carlyle has agreed to buy the
performance coatings business of DuPont for $4.9 billion
in cash. The transaction is expected to close in the first
quarter of 2013, subject to customary closing conditions and
regulatory approvals. DuPont Performance Coatings is a global
supplier of vehicle and industrial coating systems, with 2012
expected sales of more than $4 billion and more than 11,000
employees. As part of the transaction, Carlyle will assume $250
million of DuPonts unfunded pension liabilities.
Carlyles industrial and automotive investments include
Allison Transmission, Hertz and PQ Corp., as well as recent
commitments to invest in Hamilton Sundstrand Industrial and
regional rail freight operator Genesee & Wyoming.

Enterprise Products recently began an open commitment period
to determine additional shipper demand for capacity on its
Appalachia-to-Texas (ATEX Express) ethane pipeline. The
1,230-mile system will deliver growing ethane production from
the Marcellus/Utica Shale areas of Pennsylvania, West Virginia
and Ohio to Mont Belvieu, Texas. The open commitment period
will be used to determine market interest in executing
additional 15-year binding transportation agreements. The ATEX
Express is expected to begin operations in the first quarter of
2014.

Cosmo Oil will permanently close its 140,000-bpd Sakaide
refinery in western Japan by July 2013 to meet a government
regulation that encourages refining capacity cuts amid falling
local demand. The Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and
Industry set rules in July 2010 requiring refiners to raise
residual cracking capacity to a designated percentage of crude
refining capacity, as calculated by a formula, by March 2014.
By closing the refinery, Cosmo expects to save Y10
billion a year in costs.

Technip has completed the acquisition of the Stone &
Webster process technologies and associated oil and gas
engineering capabilities. Technip sees this acquisition as a
way to further diversify its onshore/offshore segment, adding
revenues based on technology supply. It will also use
the Stone & Webster brand to expand in promising growth
areas such as the US, where downstream markets will benefit
from the supply of unconventional gas. To make the most of
these strengths, a new business unit, Technip Stone &
Webster Process Technology, will be developed within
the companys onshore/offshore segment. Technip paid cash
consideration of around 225 million from existing cash
resources, which will be subject to customary price
adjustments.

Air Liquide has officially opened its first public hydrogen
filling station for passenger cars in Düsseldorf,
Germany.
This station will be followed by 10 new hydrogen filling
stations that will be designed, built and rolled out in the
next three years under the auspices of the German
governments major demonstration project. By 2015, Germany will have
a supply network of at least 50 public hydrogen filling
stations. Driven by the same dynamic, two other stations have
been installed recently by Air Liquide in Oslo, Norway, and in
Brugg, Switzerland. In Japan, the government sees hydrogen as a
promising major energy source for cars and expects to install
about 100 hydrogen distribution stations for fuel cell vehicles
by 2015. In response to this government policy, Air Liquide Japan has
recently set up a specialized team focused on the hydrogen
business. So far, they have installed three hydrogen energy
stations (in Tokyo, Kawasaki and Saga). One of these stations
demonstrated the feasibility of a complete blue
hydrogen chain, from wood chips to clean mobility.

Western Refining and Glencore International
announced that two of their subsidiary companies (York
River
Fuels and Glencore Ltd.) have entered into a long-term
commercial supply and trading agreement. Glencore has agreed to
provide global sourcing, supply and trading and inventory and
risk management services to support York Rivers
mid-Atlantic wholesale business. In return, York River has
agreed to provide rack marketing and contract and credit
management. Glencore has entered into a long-term commitment
with Epic Terminals at its terminal in Savannah, Georgia. The
Savannah terminal includes over 450,000 bbl of storage capacity
for various grades of gasoline, distillates, ethanol, biofuels and fuel blends. The
terminal will enable the two companies to expand their
wholesale capabilities and provide fuel products to their
customers from southern Georgia to northern Maryland.

Western Refining operates refineries in El
Paso, Texas, and Gallup, New Mexico. The company also runs
products terminals in Albuquerque and Bloomfield, New Mexico.
HP

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Congrates Air Liiquide for Hydrogen pumping station.Please let me know the cost and how does it compare with gasoline in Dusseldorf. How do you bring to H2 filling station, in your standard cylinders or pressure vessel?I Would like to know if your your source is chlor-alkali plants or other.